The axed singer told This Is Gloucestershire that he is "livid" about the decision, which he attributes to the fact that mentor and coach Danny O'Donoghue had told him to tone down his vocal performance during rehearsals.

Freeman said: "I am livid about it. I was put in a difficult situation - I could go against my mentor, knowing that I would not go through, or I could do as I was told knowing I was having my hands tied behind my back.

"I don't have a problem with Bo but I'm not happy about how the situation was manoeuvred."